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It's not about what you need, it's about what you want.
>If Windows already does what they (or I) need, why bother? Why spend
>the time rebuilding a functional system?
The anthropic principle... of course Windows does all you need it to do now or you wouldn't be using it. But that doesn't mean it's doing all the things you originally wanted it to do.
There are many intrinsic benefits to Linux including increased security, much smaller target vector for malware, and the last remaining major desktop OS that retains user control over the system once Windows 8 and its Metro app store hits. It has a more rapid cycle of development that leads to new technologies being adopted earlier (for instance, no native USB 3 drivers in Windows 7, which can make install on a nettop or thin client quite a pain). It can access many different disk file systems, leading to increased compatibility in the multi-device, multi-platform world we increasingly find ourselves in. Thanks to package management one tool can update not only the OS but all the software on the system. Drivers are present in the kernel and the users don't need to hunt for them either, nor do they need to wait once a month for security updates. Resource use is lower, an effect even more enhanced by not needing to run real-time virus scanners. Tom's Hardware found a system running Ubuntu and the ext4 file system could copy large files around the hard drive a whopping 20% faster than the same system running Win7 and NTFS. Every Linux system is inherently multi-user without needing to purchase a server edition. One doesn't need to run an "ultimate" edition of Linux to get necessary features like full disk encryption (vital for laptops). Users can run portable versions of their systems from flash drives (legally) and not worry about a change in their hardware requiring product re-activation or using their OS disk to make virtual machines. In fact, because the drivers are in the kernel, they can often make radical changes to their hardware and expect the system to boot back up nicely, something impossible with Windows.
That's just a few things off the top of my head without even getting into issues of choice and customization.
Linux doesn't erect a walled garden. There's nothing holding you back from doing what you wish (even dangerous or destructive things). When I was evaluating Windows 7 vs. Linux I tried installing Win7 to a separate hard drive. It kept failing and telling me there was no room on the drive even though the drive was empty. I did some homework and found out what was happening. Since I wasn't installing to the boot drive, Win7 decided without telling me to create a boot partition on the primary drive. I did NOT want to do that, as it would mess up the existing system on that drive. Fortunately there were no more free primary partitions left, causing the failure. I needed to temporarily change the boot order of the drives to "trick" Windows into installing onto the second drive. A poor soul with the same problem needed to open his case and disconnect the main drive to get Windows to install where he wanted it!
When I installed Linux, it saw what I was doing, told me it might lead to an unbootable system, and then ASKED ME IF I WANTED TO DO IT ANYWAY. That was the moment I began to understand what Linux was all about. The install also gave me the option of not installing any file it had selected for install or adding others. It displayed a list of every single thing it intended to do before beginning and gave me the opportunity to change any of them. It even helpfully highlighted possible destructive changes in red. The difference between this and the Win7 install (no customization, no clue what was going on, no respect for my own wishes, the belief it knew better than me) was day and night. Linux had me sold at the INSTALL process as the better operating system before I even got to a desktop.
A system that doesn't presume to think for the end user and lets one go as far as their desire, effort and imagination take them is a boon for any user. Windows is only going to get more radically locked down in Windows 8, including forced use of Metro and the prevention of any Metro apps being installed any way other than the new Microsoft software store... which of course has in place an additional set of restrictions on the type of software they'll sell, what licenses can be used, how the programs need to behave (e.g. start up in 2 seconds or less), etc. Keeping control of one's system in the hands of the user should be something we should be promoting to everyone. Corey Doctorow put it correctly in the title of a recent talk of his: "The Coming War Against General Purpose Computing".
>Linux may be customizable for free, but no neophyte user has the skills
>necessary to do so.
Really? A neophyte user (which I was two years ago) can't create new virtual desktops or activities in KDE, rearrange and add widgets, install things like FTP servers or samba shares?
One doesn't need programming skills to add DKMS,share files over a home network, radically customize the desktop, activate a VNC server to allow remote logins to their system, etc.
>the time rebuilding a functional system?
The anthropic principle... of course Windows does all you need it to do now or you wouldn't be using it. But that doesn't mean it's doing all the things you originally wanted it to do.
There are many intrinsic benefits to Linux including increased security, much smaller target vector for malware, and the last remaining major desktop OS that retains user control over the system once Windows 8 and its Metro app store hits. It has a more rapid cycle of development that leads to new technologies being adopted earlier (for instance, no native USB 3 drivers in Windows 7, which can make install on a nettop or thin client quite a pain). It can access many different disk file systems, leading to increased compatibility in the multi-device, multi-platform world we increasingly find ourselves in. Thanks to package management one tool can update not only the OS but all the software on the system. Drivers are present in the kernel and the users don't need to hunt for them either, nor do they need to wait once a month for security updates. Resource use is lower, an effect even more enhanced by not needing to run real-time virus scanners. Tom's Hardware found a system running Ubuntu and the ext4 file system could copy large files around the hard drive a whopping 20% faster than the same system running Win7 and NTFS. Every Linux system is inherently multi-user without needing to purchase a server edition. One doesn't need to run an "ultimate" edition of Linux to get necessary features like full disk encryption (vital for laptops). Users can run portable versions of their systems from flash drives (legally) and not worry about a change in their hardware requiring product re-activation or using their OS disk to make virtual machines. In fact, because the drivers are in the kernel, they can often make radical changes to their hardware and expect the system to boot back up nicely, something impossible with Windows.
That's just a few things off the top of my head without even getting into issues of choice and customization.
Linux doesn't erect a walled garden. There's nothing holding you back from doing what you wish (even dangerous or destructive things). When I was evaluating Windows 7 vs. Linux I tried installing Win7 to a separate hard drive. It kept failing and telling me there was no room on the drive even though the drive was empty. I did some homework and found out what was happening. Since I wasn't installing to the boot drive, Win7 decided without telling me to create a boot partition on the primary drive. I did NOT want to do that, as it would mess up the existing system on that drive. Fortunately there were no more free primary partitions left, causing the failure. I needed to temporarily change the boot order of the drives to "trick" Windows into installing onto the second drive. A poor soul with the same problem needed to open his case and disconnect the main drive to get Windows to install where he wanted it!
When I installed Linux, it saw what I was doing, told me it might lead to an unbootable system, and then ASKED ME IF I WANTED TO DO IT ANYWAY. That was the moment I began to understand what Linux was all about. The install also gave me the option of not installing any file it had selected for install or adding others. It displayed a list of every single thing it intended to do before beginning and gave me the opportunity to change any of them. It even helpfully highlighted possible destructive changes in red. The difference between this and the Win7 install (no customization, no clue what was going on, no respect for my own wishes, the belief it knew better than me) was day and night. Linux had me sold at the INSTALL process as the better operating system before I even got to a desktop.
A system that doesn't presume to think for the end user and lets one go as far as their desire, effort and imagination take them is a boon for any user. Windows is only going to get more radically locked down in Windows 8, including forced use of Metro and the prevention of any Metro apps being installed any way other than the new Microsoft software store... which of course has in place an additional set of restrictions on the type of software they'll sell, what licenses can be used, how the programs need to behave (e.g. start up in 2 seconds or less), etc. Keeping control of one's system in the hands of the user should be something we should be promoting to everyone. Corey Doctorow put it correctly in the title of a recent talk of his: "The Coming War Against General Purpose Computing".
>Linux may be customizable for free, but no neophyte user has the skills
>necessary to do so.
Really? A neophyte user (which I was two years ago) can't create new virtual desktops or activities in KDE, rearrange and add widgets, install things like FTP servers or samba shares?
One doesn't need programming skills to add DKMS,share files over a home network, radically customize the desktop, activate a VNC server to allow remote logins to their system, etc.
Posted by jgm@...
6th Oct
